Books + Ideas – Views & Research – The Conversation

Friday essay: The Catcher in the Rye is 75 – and every time I meet Holden Caulfield, I see him anew

Sascha Morrell, Monash University

Hilary McPhee

Hilary McPhee

Literary pioneer Hilary McPhee launched Helen Garner, published Cloudstreet – and inspired me

Alice Grundy, Australian National University

A bestselling novel was pulled from a French literary prize after AI accusations – what next?

Anthony Cordingley, University of Sydney

Here are five of Australia’s top library influencers. One is a 72-year-old rare books librarian

Krystal Gagen-Spriggs, Charles Sturt University

Written as a single sentence, Adam Ouston’s Mine is a novel under the influence

Emmett Stinson, Edith Cowan University

Reading, socialising and doing puzzles can help preserve cognitive health – large study shows

Paul Little, University of Southampton

An elderly woman reads a book while sitting in a library.

An elderly woman reads a book while sitting in a library.

Swan Song: Diana’s brother flips the royal family the bird in his scathing new book

Kate Cantrell, University of Southern Queensland

A pile of books: Swan Song by Charles Spencer, Diana's brother

A pile of books: Swan Song by Charles Spencer, Diana's brother

Waleed Aly believes liberalism is in trouble, but his argument leaves us in a bind

Russell Blackford, University of Newcastle

Neoliberalism is in retreat. Viktor Shvets blames the boomers – but it’s not that simple

John Quiggin, The University of Queensland

An empty New York street

An empty New York street

How has evolution shaped men’s and women’s minds? A new book tells an outdated story

Cordelia Fine, The University of Melbourne

A baby in blue laying beside a baby in pink on a bed, both looking at each other.

A baby in blue laying beside a baby in pink on a bed, both looking at each other.

Australian poetry classics: Les Murray’s The Broad Bean Sermon is inexhaustible food for contemplation

David McCooey, Deakin University

Photograph of poet Les Murray looking sideways while reaching for the glasses on his head

Photograph of poet Les Murray looking sideways while reaching for the glasses on his head

From Mumbai to Perth and beyond, Neha Kale considers, art, colonialism and ideas of home

Joanna Mendelssohn, The University of Melbourne

Naomi Klein talking in front of a sign, illegible, and a big crowd

Naomi Klein talking in front of a sign, illegible, and a big crowd

Naomi Klein’s new book calls out end times fascism. What is this – and what’s the role of big tech?

Luke Munn, The University of Queensland

Bluster and betrayal: Paul Barry probes how steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta hoodwinked the powerful

Denis Muller, The University of Melbourne

All books & ideas coverage

Books news

A man at a desk covered with papers and illustrations and art supplies, his feet up, dreaming out the window.

A man at a desk covered with papers and illustrations and art supplies, his feet up, dreaming out the window.

Gentle larrikin Terry Denton, famous for his anarchy with Andy Griffiths, made reading fun

Mark Macleod, Charles Sturt University

The Prime Minister’s Literary Award winners include a collective Yolŋu novel – and a murder trial

Liz Evans, University of Tasmania

A white woman and a Yolŋu woman stand together, smiling and holding a book, wearing patterned shift dresses.

A white woman and a Yolŋu woman stand together, smiling and holding a book, wearing patterned shift dresses.

Poetry is popular with young Australians, from pop-up readings to poetry slams

Ann Vickery, Deakin University

A young woman high knee-high boots and dark curls in front of a microphone, seated on stage.

A young woman high knee-high boots and dark curls in front of a microphone, seated on stage.

Annie Dillard brought poetry into prose, pioneering a mystical form of creative nonfiction that critics both admired and misunderstood

Amy Cannon, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Black and white image of Annie Dillard sitting in a chair in 1983

Black and white image of Annie Dillard sitting in a chair in 1983

Dolly Parton’s philanthropic Imagination Library had a proven effect in Australia, and around the world

Claire Galea, Western Sydney University

Australian poetry classics series

Australian poetry classics: Francis Webb, the 20th century’s ‘most unjustly neglected poet’, is our best kept literary secret

Toby Davidson, Macquarie University

Australian poet Francis Webb

Australian poet Francis Webb

Australian poetry classics: John Forbes’ On the Beach exposes the nation’s myths of convenience

Aidan Coleman, Southern Cross University

Australian poetry classics: Kenneth Slessor’s Five Bells gives Sydney Harbour back its darkness

Bronwyn Lea, The University of Queensland

Australian poetry classics: Oodgeroo Noonuccal’s A Song of Hope created a legacy to build on

Tess Ryan, Australian Catholic University and Kelly Humphrey, Australian Catholic University

An Aboriginal woman at a desk, and in uniform

An Aboriginal woman at a desk, and in uniform

Friday essays

Friday essay: how Australia’s ‘invasion novels’ have reflected our cultural anxieties around race

Felicity Castagna, Western Sydney University

Friday essay: Jeff Sparrow on the radical hope of ‘forgotten’ Australian writer Lesbia Harford

Jeff Sparrow, The University of Melbourne

Lesbia Harford and pages of her poetry and novel.

Lesbia Harford and pages of her poetry and novel.

Friday essay: Don Watson’s book on Paul Keating ended their friendship – is it our best ever political memoir?

Joshua Black, University of Canberra

Paul Keating speaking at the book launch of Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: A Portrait of Paul Keating PM.

Paul Keating speaking at the book launch of Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: A Portrait of Paul Keating PM.

Friday essay: can rewilding offer us a brighter, greener future?

Katherine Johnson, University of Tasmania

Underwater view of sunlight filtering through kelp

Underwater view of sunlight filtering through kelp

Friday essay: we’re all ‘political’ now – but can that lead to real change?

Intifar Chowdhury, Flinders University

Students protesting against Pauline Hanson on the steps of State Library of Victoria. Some wear hats with corks, some address Hanson in signs.

Students protesting against Pauline Hanson on the steps of State Library of Victoria. Some wear hats with corks, some address Hanson in signs.

More Friday essays

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Big ideas

Paul Keating’s AUKUS hostility reflects his passion for hard-nosed realism over subservience

Frank Bongiorno, University of Canberra

A man sitting at a desk, wearing a blue top and black glasses.

A man sitting at a desk, wearing a blue top and black glasses.

‘It’s a strange time to be a man’: in The Castle, Jon Ronson investigates the plight of unanchored men

Alexander Howard, University of Sydney

Do tech billionaires dream of shared abundance? We should probably just tax them

Carl Rhodes, University of Technology Sydney

Alice Duncan-Kemp was an empathetic observer of Mithaka culture, but her legacy is complicated

Eve Vincent, Macquarie University

Book covers for Alice's dreaming and other books with an aerial view of the Channel Country in Queensland

Book covers for Alice's dreaming and other books with an aerial view of the Channel Country in Queensland

Shocks, alchemy and John Howard’s ‘long shadow’ have shaped 21st century Australian politics

John Hawkins, University of Canberra

Testosterone maxxing is all the rage – but when it comes to fatherhood, less might be more

Samuel Cornell, The University of Queensland

Dad with baby on changing table. Both are happy.

Dad with baby on changing table. Both are happy.

History

Who was Homer, author of the Odyssey?

Tom Hercules Davies, The University of Melbourne

Lucianne Tonti’s deeply personal history of witch hunts overstates the role of misogyny

Nicole Kimball, University of Newcastle

An accused witch going through the judgement trial, where she is dunked in water to prove her guilt of practicing witchcraft.

An accused witch going through the judgement trial, where she is dunked in water to prove her guilt of practicing witchcraft.

The biggest atomic blast in Australia happened 70 years ago – mysteries about its impact linger

Elizabeth Tynan, James Cook University

In Homer’s epic, a bold princess helps Odysseus home – but not in Nolan’s film. Who is Nausicaa?

K.O. Chong-Gossard, The University of Melbourne

a man in a red robe and woman looking a bit bored in gold robe

a man in a red robe and woman looking a bit bored in gold robe

The classics

Classical painting of a pair of naked figures reclining

Classical painting of a pair of naked figures reclining

Lust and power: Foucault’s The History of Sexuality at 50

Matthew Sharpe, Australian Catholic University

Friday essay: I’ve been reading The Odyssey my whole life. Nolan’s film version is exhilarating – but not perfect

Anthony Macris, University of Technology Sydney

The Founding Father of American literature, Charles Brockden Brown saw his nation’s dark side

Hannah Lauren Murray, La Trobe University

Why Christopher Nolan turned Circe into a vindictive witch

Bailey Sincox, Binghamton University, State University of New York

A middle-aged woman with messy hair clasps her hands and rests her chin pensively on them.

A middle-aged woman with messy hair clasps her hands and rests her chin pensively on them.

Guide to the classics: John Steinbeck’s East of Eden has always been controversial

Paul Giles, Australian Catholic University

Australian children's classics series

Australian children’s classics: Seven Little Australians is our own Little Women – but naughty, not earnest

Judith Ridge, University of Newcastle; University of Tasmania

Australian children’s classics: Shaun Tan’s essential migrant story still mesmerises, 20 years on

Penni Russon, Monash University

A suited man standing over a creature on a bare bed. Both look worried.

A suited man standing over a creature on a bare bed. Both look worried.

Australian children’s classics: Playing Beatie Bow is a time-slip novel that makes Sydney strange

Monique Rooney, Australian National University

A young woman in an old-fashioned dress walking fast past old houses in a narrow-looking street. A dog in background.

A young woman in an old-fashioned dress walking fast past old houses in a narrow-looking street. A dog in background.

Australian children’s classics: Storm Boy’s tough, tender ode to wild childhood will make you cry

Margot Hillel, Australian Catholic University

A boy, Storm Boy, with his pelican, Mr Percival

A boy, Storm Boy, with his pelican, Mr Percival

More reviews

The controversy over Rachel Cusk’s Life of M misses the point

Liz Evans, University of Tasmania

California is a new republic in Exit Party, a dystopia set in 2031. What happens next?

Seth Robinson, The University of Melbourne

A cloud of tear gas dissipates in front of police on a Los Angeles street, with palm trees.

A cloud of tear gas dissipates in front of police on a Los Angeles street, with palm trees.

The Disappearers: Marlon James’s new novel gives voice to the gay men Jamaica erased

Alison Donnell, University of Bristol

Paintings of a street corner in Jamaica.

Paintings of a street corner in Jamaica.

An alternative health treatment killed Hannah’s cousin. Now she’s on a mission to warn others

Edith Jennifer Hill, Flinders University

The author of Wormhole: a young white woman with curly hair and glasses, wearing a grey vest over a long-sleeved black top.

The author of Wormhole: a young white woman with curly hair and glasses, wearing a grey vest over a long-sleeved black top.

For this woman in her 50s, endurance cycling is quietly radical – and about much more than sport

Sharyn Carnahan, Torrens University Australia

A woman in her late fifties cycling on a bush road

A woman in her late fifties cycling on a bush road

New Australian writing

a businessman with a rocket on his head

a businessman with a rocket on his head

How do you satirise a self-satirising society? Jordan Prosser gives it a go

Luke Johnson, University of Wollongong

a long-haired woman in a bookshop

a long-haired woman in a bookshop

Meg Mason’s novel about a sad, divorcing festival worker asks: can books save your life?

Amber Gwynne, The University of Queensland

a woman in a parka by the edge of the sea

a woman in a parka by the edge of the sea

This strange novel riffs on The Tempest, swapping its teen girl for a menopausal marine biologist

Jen Webb, University of Canberra

You won’t sleep until you finish reading this rare, exotic blend of crime and poetry

Kevin John Brophy, The University of Melbourne

a woman in water at night

a woman in water at night

Wild souls and irreverent humour enliven these timely award-winning books

Emma Kohen, Western Sydney University

Close-up of a Tasmanian devil's face

Close-up of a Tasmanian devil's face

This haunting novel narrated by a book stayed with me for weeks

Angela Glindemann, RMIT University

a hand holding a book, with blurred flowers

a hand holding a book, with blurred flowers

Maria Takolander’s futuristic novel of ‘everyday horrors’ follows a mother’s quest to save her son

Joanne Anderton, The University of Queensland

a long-haired woman kissing a child on forehead

a long-haired woman kissing a child on forehead

Better reading series

Square red clock leaning against a stack of books

Square red clock leaning against a stack of books

Some speed-reading apps make big claims. But how fast can we actually read?

Erik D. Reichle, Macquarie University

Do we absorb information better on paper, rather than screens? It depends on the screen

Erik D. Reichle, Macquarie University and Lili Yu, Macquarie University

How to read the classics in an age of distraction – and 3 short books to get you going

Johanna Harris, Australian Catholic University

More than 1 in 3 Australian adults are functionally illiterate. How can we fix this?

Genevieve McArthur, Australian Catholic University

a person looking at a form

a person looking at a form

Does your child only read graphic novels? That’s OK – it’s helping them build literacy skills

Judith Ridge, University of Tasmania and Robyn Cox, University of Tasmania

graphic novel book covers against a colourful background

graphic novel book covers against a colourful background

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The twin towers in New York, billowing smoke after being attacked on 9/11, 2001.

The twin towers in New York, billowing smoke after being attacked on 9/11, 2001.

5 great 9/11 novels grapple with grief, trauma and the ‘American dream’

Jessica Gildersleeve, University of Southern Queensland

The wondrous history of fairy tale art – from wolves and witches to fallen princesses

Elena Sottilotta, University of Cambridge

The book jacket for The Art of Fairy Tales

The book jacket for The Art of Fairy Tales

Feuds, power and entitlement: 5 revealing royal books

Dennis Altman, La Trobe University

5 Bret Easton Ellis adaptations, ranked from worst to best

Alexander Howard, University of Sydney

Feminist icon Gloria Steinem lifted up women everywhere, leaving behind a more gender-equal world

Sharon Crozier-De Rosa, University of Wollongong

A woman at a protest lectern gives a speech

A woman at a protest lectern gives a speech

Books of the century

Best Australian books of the 21st century: as chosen by 50 experts

Jo Case, The Conversation

20 best New Zealand books of the 21st century: as chosen by experts

Finlay Macdonald, The Conversation; Jo Case, The Conversation; Matt Garrow, The Conversation, and Suzy Freeman-Greene, The Conversation

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